Sixty-seven percent of Most Wired hospitals ordered medications electronically, in comparison to 46 percent of the total responders. Fifty-eight percent of all organizations reported that they have implemented computerized standing orders based on treatment protocols that have been scientifically proven to be effective; in the Most Wired group, 86 percent have implemented such standing orders.

A greater reliance on digital records puts pressure on chief information officers (CIOs) to ensure data can be restored quickly in the event that systems go down. Eighty-two percent of the Most Wired hospitals and 57 percent of all surveyed hospitals can restore clinical data within 24 hours after a power loss.

Most Wired hospitals are leading in the use of encryption on movable devices to safeguard information. All Most Wired hospitals encrypt data for laptops and 76 percent encrypt smartphones, in comparison to 85 percent of total responders that use encryption on laptops and 57 percent on smartphones./li>
</ul>
<p>"Greater adoption of IT can bring important new tools to our efforts to improve the safety and quality of care in hospitals, and better coordinate care across settings," says Rich Umbdenstock, president and CEO of the AHA. "To promote further use of information technology, we are aggressively working to remove regulatory barriers, and provide clarity in areas such as the meaningful use criteria."

Strides are also being made in the integration of the electronic health records with digital clinical imaging, according to survey results. Progress in the areas of digital dictation, structured reporting and voice recognition with picture archiving and communication systems is also being made. Under these systems, clinicians receive faster diagnostic results that can improve aspects of patient care.

"Most hospitals look beyond short-term drivers of meaningful use and view technology as part of a powerful toolkit to support their long-term goals for clinical quality improvement and preparation for reform," said Patrick Blake, executive vice president and group president, McKesson Technology Solutions, a sponsor of the survey. "Using all aspects of an electronic health record, including CPOE, is becoming the expected standard of care in many communities. As a result, we continue to see growth in those areas."

Click to the next page to see a full list of Most Wired 2011 winners.

Click this image to see a data visualization of the Most Wired hospitals distributed by state: